Romulus senior Wes Clark / Jarrad Henderson/Detroit Free Press

Romulus coach Nate Oats yells to his players during the second half Saturday at the Breslin Center. His Eagles won, 61-49, in the Class A final.

Eagles point guard Wes Clark was all smiles after Romulus won the championship game. He scored 10 of his 12 points in the third quarter. / Photos by Jarrad Henderson/Detroit Free Press

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EAST LANSING -- Detroit Southeastern, on the verge of being run out of the Breslin Center in the opening minutes, had clawed its way back into the Class A state championship game by halftime.

That's when Romulus coach Nate Oats had a little heart-to-heart with Wes Clark.

Clark is a terrific point guard on the most talented team in the state. When you play with such gifted teammates, sometimes you don't assert yourself as much as you can.

Oats wanted him to start asserting.

"We've got 16 minutes until the end of your senior year, win or lose," Oats told him. "You're either going to take this game over like you can or you're going to finish your senior year on a bad note."

Then Oats noticed Clark had scored only one point in the first half.

"Can you give us one half here up at the Breslin, please?" he asked.

How about one unforgettable quarter?

Clark, who signed with Missouri, scored 10 of his 12 points in the third quarter as the Eagles got a 61-49 victory Saturday to claim the elusive state title.

He left the locker room and began the third quarter by hitting a three-point shot.

With Southeastern within nine points, Clark drove through the heart of the defense for a lay-in. Not long after he drove to the basket, drew the contact and scored again before he hit the ground and added a free throw.

He had one more breathtaking drive left in the quarter before he passed to E.C. Matthews for a three-point shot, giving Romulus a 19-point lead entering the fourth quarter. All that was left to do was start engraving the trophy.

Clark wanted to put the game away in the third quarter because he doesn't like drama.

"We like to keep the game from fourth-quarter mystery," he said. "We want to keep it away from the refs and lucky shots and stuff like that, so we try to end the game in the first three quarters."

There was no mystery. The Eagles could have had pizza delivered to their bench in the fourth quarter.

This weekend marked Oats' fifth time to the Class A final four, but it was only the second time for Clark.

"As a junior, it was my first time being here to the Breslin, so I didn't understand what type of feeling it was to lose in the Breslin," he said. "Going into my senior year, I just know that I didn't want to feel that again, so I took that on in the off-season and in the spring, going hard at 6 a.m. running hills just to make sure this wouldn't happen again."

Clark attacked the off-season like a maniac, which might be why he had to be carried off the court in the regional final.

Tendinitis flared up so badly in his right knee that he needed anti-inflammatory shots before each of the final three games.

"When I'm out there, I don't really notice it because my adrenaline is running," Clark said. "Going into the game, I thought if I was going to be out there, I had to give it my all."

He gave it his all, especially on his almost reckless drives to the basket when he knew full well he was going to end up on the ground, knee throbbing.

"It's sacrifice," he said.

Oats singled out Clark at halftime because he knew Clark was the guy who would do whatever it took to win.

"Wes is the most competitive kid I've ever coached in my life," Oats said. "He just refuses to lose at anything, and we kind of take his whole persona with that."

Once the game ended, Clark admitted his knee was killing him.

"I didn't even think about the knee during the game," he said. "But, yeah, I feel it now."

He is going to feel that knee for years, and he could not care less.

"Now, since we got the state championship,' he said, "I can rest in peace."

More Details: Boys basketball scoreboard

E.C. Matthews had 20 points and 10 rebounds, leading the Eagles to a dominant Class A victory over a tough PSL team and their first basketball state title since 1986.

Country Day 57,

Detroit Community 49

The Yellowjackets entered the Class B title game ranked No. 1 and ended the night the same way. Guard Austin Price scored 15 points in the win.

Flint Beecher 40,

Laingsburg 39

Mr. Basketball Monte Morris scored 16 points as the Buccaneers survived a scare from Laingsburg on the way to their second straight Class C state title.

Southfield Christian 65,

Wyoming Tri-unity 46

The Eagles, with just two senior reserves on their roster, won their second straight Class D title. Junior Damarco White led the way with 15 points.

More details: The All-Knowing One …

How did Son of Swami fare in his finals picks? Well, after going 2-2 in the girls basketball finals last weekend, he was a perfect 4-for-4 in the boys finals. He picked Romulus, Flint Beecher, Country Day and Southfield Christian.